Apple to Close iPhone Security Hole That Police Use to Crack Devices

Source: The New York Times

By Jack Nicas
June 13, 2018

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple has long positioned the iPhone as a secure device that only its owner can open. That has led to battles with law enforcement officials who want to get information off them, including a well-publicized showdown with the F.B.I. in 2016 after Apple refused to help open the locked iPhone of a mass killer.

The F.B.I. eventually paid a third party to get into the phone, circumventing the need for Apple’s help. Since then, law enforcement agencies across the country have increasingly employed that strategy to get into locked iPhones they hope will hold the key to cracking cases.

Now Apple is closing the technological loophole that let authorities hack into iPhones, angering police and other officials and reigniting a debate over whether the government has a right to get into the personal devices that are at the center of modern life.

Apple said it was planning an iPhone software update that would effectively disable the phone’s charging and data port — the opening where users plug in headphones, power cables and adapters — an hour after the phone is locked. While a phone can still be charged, a person would first need to enter the phone’s password to transfer data to or from the device using the port.

1. Unfortunately I have an iphone 7

but I only use it for text and voice. I do not use their backup system. I don't use any social media apps or other apps. I don't use their fingerprint or financial apps. I consider all smartphones surveillance devices so I use them for an extremely purpose.